Access Granted
by LikeMulderandScully
Summary: Booth knows alot more about Brennan than she thinks. A series of oneshots about all the things Booth knows about his lady scientist.
1. Access Granted

I couldn't resist.

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"Daffodil,

Daisy,

Jupiter,

Delphnius,

Dolphin,

Patella,

Lunate,

Midnight,

Thai,

Chemistry…

Carrot,

Strawberry,

Burgundy,

Emerald,

Cerulean,

October,

April,

Blackbird…

MarcoPolo,

Aristotle,

Gershwin,

Radiohead,

Poco,

Snickerdoodle,

Istanbul,

Morocco,

Magnolia…

Daffodil."

"Damn. Fine, so what if you know my password?"


	2. Jupiter

I thought about expanding this fic, cause it was so fun and I decided to do a couple one-shots about some of the password choices and the motivations/stories behind them... its really just an excuse to write about Booth's obsession with a certain scientist.

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Petulant thoughts kept invading Temperance Brennan's objective mind as she sat in the FBI standard issue SUV, which was steadily growing colder as time wore on. She leaned forward and looked skyward through the windshield. _'A clear starry night, the kind painters paint and astronomers wait years for and I am sitting in the car. Couldn't he have let me chase the suspect too? I'm smart enough not to get lost in the woods! Forget it. It could take him hours to find that guy in the woods, even if he is an army ranger.'_

As she got out, the slamming of the door was enough to make the branches of nearby trees quiver. Twenty minutes later, her partner stumbled out of those same trees.

Bones! I got him! Could you call for the backup team and then come help me?

Booth struggled up the embankment heading back to the SUV carrying what felt like 2000 pounds of dead, well unconscious, serial killer weight.

Could I get a little help here Bones? He's kinda unconscious, and hard to carry uphill in the dark! Bones? Hey Bones? Get your super smart ass out here before I decide to compromise some evidence!

"Boooones? Where'd you go?"

"Bones!?"

_Oh my god, where is she?_

Booth hurriedly cuffed the unresponsive mound of criminal flesh to the car and got out his flashlight, frantically looking for tracks. _Where is she? Why would she get out of the car?_

Spotting a few broken twigs and footprints, he began to track his partner through the night. _At least her movements seem normal, not hurried or irrational, so she wasn't running away from anything…_

_ ...is this my fault?_

Booth pushed his way through one last bush and found himself in large clearing with a giant rock formation in the middle. On the very top stood a shadow, a shadow that was very obviously female. Brennan.

"Bones?" She didn't seem to hear him. "Bones?"

He climbed up and approached her. She turned slowly, eyes bright with an expression he'd seen before. He'd seen it when she laughed at him, joked with him and Angela, and when she at dinner with him at Wong Foo's. It was the one she made when everything was right with the world, and nothing else mattered but the moment she was experiencing now.

But Booth was too worried to concentrate on her emotional state, he was just worried she'd been hurt or could have been hurt.

"Bones, I told you to wait. Don't you know better than to walk around in strange woods at night? Who knows what could have happened!"

She didn't get mad, or yell or stomp away like he had expected. She just stood there exuding tranquility, and her calmness began to relax her partner's over-stimulated nerves.

When she perceived Booth's body language calming down she stepped closer to him, gently put her hand on his upper arm, and said softly:

"Booth, look up."

He did. And he was lost. He was lost in a sea of stars; it was unbelievable how many there were, and how close they seemed. They swirled in his vision and invaded every sense. He saw constellations he hadn't seen since his days in the desert, the ones that had kept him company through nights of horror and torture. Their light claimed him, and he felt as if he had left the earth. Their brightness was only intensified by the sensations coming from the skin on his arm, the skin his beautiful partner was resting her palm against.

"Bones, they're beautiful…" He breathed, somewhat hesitantly putting his strong arm around her and drawing her close. She didn't fight him, just leaned into his side and placed her arm around his back. It was a moment Brennan was sure she would remember her entire life. She was surprised how much Booth knew about the stars, he never ceased to amaze her, no matter how much she denied it.

He couldn't remember how long they stood there, how long he held her close, or how angry their suspect was when they finally returned to the car. He just remembered the look on her face when she told him about her favorite planet, the one they had stood watching: Jupiter.

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Like it? Hate it? Should have kept it as it was? Let me know!


	3. Lunate

I sort of decided to pick the words I have a good story for at the moment. It will probably still go semi-in-order but I had a good idea for this word.

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"Is this going to take as long as it looks Bones? It's a suicide; the coroner, the CSI and the guy selling roses out of a shopping cart on the corner would agree." Booth groaned observing his partner, who was currently face to bone with yet another incarnation of Skeletor.

Never taking her eyes from the skull in front of her, she didn't react to his complaint except to reprimand him "It will take the time that it takes to do right Booth, you should know that by now. And though it may well be a suicide, I cannot conclude that until all of the evidence is in; which you should also know by now."

"Yea Bones, I do know. However; you see, when you are 'Special Agent in Charge', people; namely Charlie, well Agent Thompson; tend to suck up to you. This week, Charlie gave me his third row seats to the Nats game… And I think you would agree that I can't be in two places at once."

"Is that baseball?" Brennan asked; her eyes big and round with sincerity.

Booth couldn't help but chuckle at his beautiful genius partner. _How can she know so much and know so little at the same time?_ "Yea Bones, its baseball."

"Ok. I'll try to finish up, but I won't skip anything."

"I know Bones, you just do your thing. I'll be here."

Booth couldn't help but notice the quick, but joyful smile that flashed across her face at his last sentence. _God she's perfect._ If he couldn't be at the game for the opening pitch, at least he could stand here and have an excuse to stare at his Bones for a while. For the first time he really watched how she worked, and he found it incredibly fascinating. She was so thorough, taking almost five minutes to examine each of the larger bones, and only slightly less time on each of the smaller bones. She worked from head to toe, consumed with her task. He couldn't help but wonder if she would be so meticulous and all-consumed with his 'bones' when… _No, she's your partner. Stop it. But, she might. Stop. Stop. Stop._

A comfortable silence had descended upon them both, only interrupted by Zach when he periodically came in to take measurements for himself or Angela.

She had reached the hands now, and spread the many bones of the left palm out with her latex glove covered fingertips. She was taking about a minute to look at each of them, until she reached a small bone that looked to Booth like a crescent shape. She spent about five times longer to look at this one hand-bone than all the others. While she looked at this particular bone her expression went from one of searching and investigating to one of pure asthetic appreciation. This happened again on the right hand. Booth smiled a mischievous smile; her demeanor always changed back as she moved to the next bone, and he knew why.

An hour and a half later she was finally done. She looked up from the toe of the skeleton and said:

"I have determined that it was a suicide."

"Great. Now you and the homeless flower guy can have something in common." His facetious grin let her know that he was joking with her; she liked it when he did that. Not many scientists had a good sense of humor, except for Angela and Hodgins; they were jokesters through and through. But Booth, and only Booth, knew how to make her laugh which is what she did at that moment.

Booth stepped up to the examination table, pen in hand and leaned down close to the left hand of the victim. _What could he possibly be doing?_ He pointed at a particular carpal and asked "What's the name of this one Bones?"

She sidled up next to him and looked where he was pointing. Her breath caught for a second. _Did he see? Of course not stupid, he's probably just curious._ So she told him.

"It's called the Lunate."

"Lunate." He repeated.

"Yes."

"So tell me why this one is your favorite bone."

"What? How do you know that? I've never said anything about it."

"Some things don't need to be said, they are just known." He caught her eyes meaningfully "You can't hide from me Bones, I know you. Now tell me why you like this bone. I want to know."

"I don't really know how to say it"

"Just give it a shot Bones. I won't laugh or anything."

She was touched by the sincerity she heard in his voice, so she decided to try "There isn't really a logical reason Booth, I just think it has a pretty curved shape… I guess I like everything about it; how the smooth curve fits your thumb-tip perfectly; how it looks like a crescent moon at just the right angle; and it looks so much more elegant and beautiful than the bones around it."

Booth just barely fought the phrase '_Just like you babe.' _back into his thoughts and out of his throat. Instead he held out his hand, palm up, and asked "So where on your hand is this elegant bone?"

She looked at his offered hand, back into his chocolate eyes, and then back to his hand. She reached out and placed her index finger to a spot at the base of his palm. "Right here."

He lifted he other hand with his and pressed an index finger to the same spot on her hand. He smiled down at her. "Right there. The most beautiful bone in the whole world."

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Reviews are the proverbial chicken soup for the Fan-fic writer's soul…. Hehe.


	4. Midnight

I finally got 15 min. on my grandparents computer to use the internet… I finished this chap. yesterday on my laptop and have been dying to post it… so here goes. And Happy Thanksgiving!

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The grandfather clock in the old hotel rang 11 times. And Temperance Brennan couldn't sleep. She was tired. Working a case, especially in cold, snowy upstate New York, will do that to you, but she absolutely couldn't fall asleep. Something Booth said was keeping her awake. Why couldn't she just let it go? He'd tell her what he really meant later if she asked. She intentionally slowed her breathing and emptied her lungs; then slowly filled them back up. _Calm. Calm. Calm. Crap. This is all his fault._

_He was talking about me right?_ Maybe it was one of those 'things' that she just didn't understand. She hated not understanding normal people's speech, Hyperbole was something that she didn't catch until it was too late; Idioms went right over her head; References, unless they were historical, confused her; and Personification just plain annoyed her. Scientific speech was what she knew and understood, but apparently that meant she couldn't converse with a normal guy like Booth.

_Tempe you need to sleep, he's gonna kick your butt in the morning if you are too tired to work efficiently._ She flipped over and tried the other side of the huge bed. _Too cold._

What if it was an insult? No, Booth was far too respectful of her to insult her in a way she wouldn't understand. Well he did call her his 'grandmother' once, on that tunnel case last spring… _Nope._ There wasn't any noticeable malice in his body language when he said it. There were all the earmarks of a joke, but somehow it seemed different than when Angela or Hodgins made a joke like that. He seemed less detached, less sarcastic almost, _for lack of a better word_, loving. _Angela! I could call her and ask… but she'd probably just laugh and tell me to ask Booth or squeal and tell me to go jump him._

Her warm feet hit the cold floor and she searched for the hotel's white fuzzy slippers. She had left the fire burning but two hours later it was just embers. The room had begun to grow cold and she shivered a little as she pulled on a big sweater from her suitcase. _A brisk walk to the dining room and back will be good for me. Some hot chocolate will help too._

Brennan never made it all the way downstairs, because as she passed the second floor she saw Booth's door. 203. A subconscious force tugged at her and she found herself in front of it. She began a mental debate whether to knock or not. As she was arguing with herself, a voice behind her said jovially "Caught ya, Bones. Now you can't short my sheets or steal my clothes."

Her brain's debate shut off as she realized who was behind her. "Why would I do that Booth?"

"It's a prank, like at sleep- away camp in Junior High."

"Oh."

"I'm glad you came down, I was actually on my way up to bring you this."

She finally noticed the two steaming mugs in his hands. She laughed. _He was bringing me hot chocolate_."Booth, that's why I was down here, I came down to get some. I had noticed the machine in the Dining room earlier and figured it would be left on at night. What a coincidence that we had the same idea."

"Well, I wouldn't really call it that much of a coincidence, I heard you tossing and turning up there… Your room is right above mine. Are you alright?"

She was touched, and making eye contact with him, she knew he knew it. "Yea, I just can't seem to sleep."

"Ok. Why don't you come in and we'll see if some hot chocolate and excellent conversation can make you a little sleepier." He waggled his eyebrows at the word 'excellent' and she smiled at his typical over-confidence.

"Sure." He held the door open and motioned to the big pair of faded red velveteen armchairs that stood in front of Booth's still roaring fire. She plonked down gladly in the toasty chair as he handed her her mug.

"This really is a beautiful hotel, I'm glad it's the only one in town so I can get away writing this off as an expense to the Bureau."

His statement about the hotel reminded her why she had come down here in the first place. _I might as well ask him… _

"Hey Booth… can I ask you something?"

"Always." He answered sweetly between sips of the rich cocoa.

The questions tumbled out so fast he could hardly hear them. "Why did you call me Clarice? And why'd the bellman laugh when you called him 'Hermey'? His name was George. And what's an abominable snowman? Is it one of those things I don't understand? Because I really do try."

He nearly burst out laughing into his hot chocolate, but he looked up at her first. She looked so eager and confused; it was so adorable that his mirth overflowed into a wide, saccharine smile.

After a minute he stood and walked over to the large antique armoire that opened to reveal a television. Searching through the local TV guide as he spoke, he explained his references; "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. It's an old kid's Christmas movie. Clarice, Hermey and 'the Bumble' are all characters in it. Hermey is an elf that wants to be a dentist instead of a toy-maker, and 'the Bumble' is a big abominable snowman who turns out to be nice. And Clarice" He paused in his perusing and looked her in the eyes as he said softly; "… She's the nice, pretty reindeer who accepts Rudolph even though he's different.

She broke eye contact first, and leaving him internally flustered. He flicked on the TV and consulted the guide again tuning it to channel 35. "Anyways Bones, you asked this question at the right time of year because three weeks before Christmas this movie is on all the time. We can catch most of it right now; besides, the first part is just Rudolph not fitting in and stuff."

Booth flopped onto the king-sized bed and watched with her, explaining as it went on. He observed as she assimilated the movie, taking everything in, almost like a child. The look innocence on her face was something he'd never seen in her before. She began to giggle, also something Booth had never heard before.

"Booth I can't believe you called the bellman Hermey… he probably should have hit you!"

"It was a compliment… Dentists are very highly regarded in some circles." He laughed in return. "I'm glad you're enjoying it. Most people have seen this so many times they hate it. It's nice to watch it with fresh eyes."

Temperance got up from her chair, and leaving her mug on the mantle flopped onto the bed right next to him. "Thanks. It's good to feel like a kid sometimes."

_She is feeling childish! That's why she's being so playful. It's sweet. She's sweet._

They silently watched Rudolph until the clock struck twelve. As the ancient clock in the hall bonged its way to twelve. Booth noticed a change in his partners face. She smiled like she was remembering something.

"What's up Bones? It's midnight."

Her smile got wider and her eyes lit up, but she kept her concentration on Rudolph's adventures with Hermey. "Yea, that's it Booth; Midnight. It's my favorite time of day."

"How come?"

Turning to look at him and leaning up on one elbow, she described her midnight. "It's so different from all the other times. It's exciting and yet it happens everyday. It's an end and a beginning at basically the same moment. It's a time that begins years and ends days. It's also the exact moment I was born. It makes me remember my family as it was, not how I know it now. Midnight seems alive to me, and when your life is about death, you cling to things that seem more alive than their surroundings." She paused here, obviously thinking hard about something.

She looked him straight in the eye, as determined as he'd ever seen her. "Booth, I think that's why I value you and Angela as friends; you seem to live more than anyone I've known. Angela loves everything; she sees value and beauty in so much that it comes through in her lifestyle. And you… you make other peoples lives so much better by what you do, enriching your own in the process. I don't know where you get your hope Booth, but the way you live… it's beautiful."

He regarded her caringly. "Thanks Bones, that's probably the best compliment I've ever gotten."

Another warm smile matched his. "You're welcome, but Booth? Why is the abominable snowman good now?"

They laughed and talked for a while longer, and as the credits began to roll Booth noticed that his partner had fallen asleep, just like a worn out kid. The soft glow of the TV created an ethereal light upon her sleeping form, and it took everything in him not to wake her with a kiss and lead her upstairs, but he couldn't. So he did the next best thing, he gently scooped her up into his capable arms and carried her back to her room.

As he laid her under the soft down comforter and tucked her in, he thought about what she had said to him about midnight, and about his hope. The clock read 1:05 as he reached past it and tenderly tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, lingering slightly as he pulled away. He whispered something as he turned to leave, barely discernable from the sound of the wind and snow whipping outside the windows.

"Most of my hope comes from you Bones. You and your beautiful mind."

As the door closed behind him, a small blissful smile gave her away.

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Reviews get you five gold stars and a Candygram from the Bones star of your choice… so review!


	5. Thai

Ok. So I had typhoid writer's block with this chapter (which is why it wasn't finished sooner). But tonight's potential kiss made me so excited that I had to write something. I'm still not completely happy with it… but here goes nothing.

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"Thai Food?" They crooned in unison, as if they could read the other's mind. Booth couldn't take his eyes off of the genuine smile his partner had on her face. _Structured very well?! What was I thinking? She's drop dead gorgeous. Period. Perfect chance to tell her and all I can manage is 'structured well'? … stop being a wimp Seeley. She's heard it before. Just not from me. Her partner. Work. Maybe this isn't a good idea. _So he took a different tactic.

"This time I'm ordering more mee krob because you ate it last time. All of it."

"What? I thought you were done!"

"Oh, right. I was done?"

"Yeah."

"You finished all of it." He giggled like a five year-old.

"I did not." She frowned, adding adamantly "You were pretty focused on the fried rice."

"Can we just order? Okay?" He offered peaceably; a hint of laughter in his deep voice.

"Fine. But I want a little more rice this time."

It took about 40 minutes for the food to arrive, in which time they finished about half of the necessary paperwork. The Jeffersonian didn't allow outside deliveries after business hours, so they had to meet 'Joe' at the front of the lab. As the delivery guy left, a sizable tip in hand, Booth grabbed the mee krob from the bag, ran back up to the lounge and did a dance of victory as he opened it up and took a huge bite.

"Booth! You're such a child!" She yelled after him, her laughter echoing throughout the gigantic empty room.

"Then come and stop me fair maiden so far below." _Hey 'fair'; that's like beautiful… does that count?_

She didn't even notice. "And you call me the geek."

The food was great, but didn't exactly help them work any faster. After a while they had stopped working all-together and sat talking about anything and everything.

"… And Russ swears that I asked her 'Do all sharks make that noise Mom?' I was probably only eight when I saw the movie. He came up behind me the whole week after that singing 'da dum, da dum' in my ear."

When Booth's laughing fit had subsided, he was curious. "So you've seen Jaws. What about Back to the Future?"

"Nope."

"Star Wars?"

"Russ made me watch all three when I was twelve."

"There are six Bones. Three more came out recently."

"Oh. Does half count for anything?"

"Course it does. The latest three were a let-down anyways…"

She beamed happily; glad to have gleaned some pop-culture points from his impressive repertoire. He loved that a simple affirmation like that could make her look like she'd just won a Nobel Prize. Her face became a moon, reflecting all of the light nearby, but making it brighter, seemingly making the world brighter. Booth had always wanted to tell her how wonderful she was, but thought it would freak her out or leave him with a broken arm and bruised ego. He had to say something. _I'll try again… She's a genius right? I wonder how good she is at reading between the lines… _

"Bones, you know what I **really love** about **Thai Food**?"

She mocked his over-inflected speech with her reply. "What Booth? What do you**'love'** about **Thai Food**?"

He was silent for a minute, considering how exactly to phrase it. She looked curiously at him to continue, and he met her eyes and held them, unblinking, willing her to see through his ridiculous ploy.

"Thai food is like the most beautiful food in the world, but by accident. It doesn't even have to try to be beautiful, most food has to be made to look beautiful. But Thai Food… it's lovely all the time."

"Booth, Thai Food isn't pretty, it's just food."

_So close._ He groaned a little and replied, fully meeting her eyes and weighting each word with significance. "

"I think Thai Food is gorgeous."

She gave him a look of bemused confusion and went back to her paperwork.

_Greaaat job Seel. _He thought, watching her fiddle with her pen as she read a form. _She can't even tell when you are being sarcastic, how's she supposed to recognize a metaphor like that? That was even worse than 'structured well'. At least she knew what I was saying that time. But I got to use the word beautiful, and gorgeous too! That should be something. Too bad it's not. Whatever. She'll know eventually, I'll tell her someday. Maybe sometime when she can't hurt me…_ With that, he went back to the mind-numbing task set before him.

But Brennan's thoughts were anywhere but on the paper she was pretending to read._What the hell was that about? That was really weird. He doesn't think Thai food is beautiful. He's even said that some of it looks like dog vomit. Which it does, unfortunately. But you don't call food 'beautiful' do you? Unless he was being metaphoric… was he? Its possible. But then what was he really talki--- Oh. Wow._

Booth looked up for a moment, and saw her cheeks turn a quite becoming shade of red._ She's blushing… She knows… But why haven't I been tossed over the balcony yet?_

"What's with the color change Bones?"

"Um. Nothing. Nothing."

"OK."

As soon as he looked back down she got up her nerve.

"Booth… before… um, were you… um."

He nearly laughed at her discomfort, but quickly remembered why it was that she was uncomfortable. So he interrupted.

"Yea Bones, I was; and you are. I just didn't want to freak you out."

She felt strangely giddy inside. She meant to sweep it away with some rational statement, or just say a simple 'Thanks Booth'; but in that moment, all she wanted to hear was his deep chocolate baritone voice say it. To her.

"You can say it. I won't freak out." She said trying to hide the hopeful tone in her voice.

He wasn't going to let her have it that easy. He gave her a charm smile to make up for what he was about to do.

"Good to know."

_So close. _She watched as he turned his back to the paperwork, unaware of the celebration going on in his mind. _Yes! Score one for Seeley. She wants you to say it! Yes! Yes!_

She would never be able to concentrate now.

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Reviews make me want to write more… so if you want another chapter, Review! I will also throw in a trip to the exotic city of your choice with Booth, Hodgins, Zach or Sweets. You know you want to…

P.S. Squeeeeeeeeeee for 'Santa in the Slush' BB action!! (ooh... when most of you read this it will have already happened!!!)


	6. Chemistry

This chapter had kind of a mind of it's own, and ended up dealing more with the word itself than how Booth knows about it… I'm assuming he knows she loves chemistry from that time she said she 'missed organic chemistry class' …and I thought it would be completely within the realm of her character to unwittingly pick a password that had so much potential subtext to it... so enjoy! …And thanks so much to everyone who has reviewed so far, you guys are so great!

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"Chemistry: Intense emotional or psychological interaction between two people, usually experienced as powerful mutual attraction." Angela Pearly-Gates Montenegro, best friend to Tempe Brennan and sage to all, knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Brennan and her FBeye-candy had it in spades, but just try telling either of them.

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"That's not what the word 'chemistry' means Angela!" Brennan exclaimed trying desperately to avoid the 'you and Booth should just hook up already' rigmarole that she got at least once a case since she had hugged him at Angela's wedding. Physically she could run away, but Angela always followed…and mentally Angela was always in her head, especially when Booth was less than a foot away.

But today Angela obviously wasn't going to let this go too easily; then again, she never did.

"Sweetie, this is what I do! You gotta trust me. And by the looks of your knight in FBI standard-issue body armor over there I can promise you won't regret it for a second." She said with what could only be a sly, mind-in-the-gutter smirk. Brennan finally paused in her marathon circuit around the lab tables and turned around.

"But we do nothing but argue!"

"Aha!" the artist pointed a finger in her friend's direction. "I thought you said that you and Booth 'don't argue'."

Brennan sighed and started for her office. Angela was, of course, skipping a few steps behind. "If you two don't 'argue', then what is it that you do ALL the time?"

Brennan headed straight for her desk and while flipping through various papers; she tried to explain herself to the artist perched on the arm of her sofa.

"Well… in basic terms that's what we do… but there's no anger in it, so it's not really arguing in the classical sense… It's more like a lively discussion… it's even kind of fun."

Angela took her elbow and pulled her over to the couch. "Sweetie… that's called 'banter'. All great couples with chemistry do it; Elizabeth and Darcy, Beatrice and Benedict, Nick and Nora and Mulder and Scully."

Brennan looked confused for a minute, searching through her mind for the cultural references. "I guess that makes sense in the larger view, the 'banter' could be a coping mechanism for subconscious sexual attraction, but I don't know about including Booth and I in tha… Wait, Mulder and Scully? Booth called us that once! But I still don't know what it means."

Angela couldn't decide whether to faint, squeal, or run and tell Hodgins, so she opted for a voice that rivaled a chipmunk's. "He said what?!"

Temperance leaned back and made a face at the shrill sound that escaped her friend's lips; and then scooted farther back when Angela began to smile like the Cheshire cat in that movie that her friend Cindy had liked when she was eight.

"I don't see the big deal Angela. Booth and I are just partners… but I guess I should ask, based on your reaction, who are Mulder and Scully?"

Angela quickly calmed herself down enough to explain. "Mulder and Scully were characters on a TV show from the 90's called 'The X-files'. They were FBI agents who investigated paranormal events like UFO sightings and stuff; she was a doctor and a skeptic, he was a psychological profiler and a believer in just about everything they encountered…"

"Logically, I'd say that was a pretty good analog to Booth and I, but why did you get so excited? They were partners too, right?"

"Hold on Bren, I haven't gotten to the best part of it yet. In between all the bickering, bantering and aliens, Mulder and Scully fell in love; but neither one would admit it. For years they bickered, hugged, argued, hugged, and drove all of the fans completely insane. Just like you and Booth drive Hodgins and I insane. And since he made the reference… You see where I'm going here?"

Suddenly the room seemed a too small and too warm for Brennan's liking, she got up and walked to the doorframe to get some air. "… You think he thinks that we could fall… eventually… umm…hmm…"

Angela smiled at her discomfort and watched as her best friend on the whole world stared out her office door at the man in question, who was looking over Hodgins' shoulder at something. After a second, he looked up and stared back. Neither took their eyes off the other for a few long minutes, as if they were studying each other, searching for some kind of truth in their partners' eyes. Angela wanted to squeal again, but controlled herself enough to walk over and put a hand on Brennan's shoulder and whisper in her ear.

"Bren, I think he already is."

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"Chemistry: the branch of science that deals with the composition of and combination of elements, and the investigation of how they interact, combine and change each other." Jack Hodgins, self proclaimed bug man and reluctant millionaire, had read this definition a million times over the years, but never seen it apply to a pair of people as well as to his colleague and her big, tall FBI agent partner. Asking Booth about it scared him just a tad, but with his well-developed sense of humor, how bad could one little comment be?

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"I am not going to ask her out Hodgins! What does this lab do to you people?"

"Ok, no dating." He decided to try a little harder. "How about just pushing her up against the wall and kissing her senseless?"

Before he got soundly thwapped in the face with a manila folder, the entomologist glimpsed Booth's immediate reaction to his suggestion. It was a grin; one that he had often seen in the mirror before he and Angela had gotten together. It was a grin with a darker side, a side of fear and nervousness. And then his vision was filled with beige and the smell of freshly copied paper.

"Ok, ok, ok, Man. I get it. But you can't honestly say you haven't thought about it."

"Maybe I can honestly say that."

Hodgins gave him his patented 'yea right' look and with a quick look around to see whom was within earshot the Agent folded instantly.

"Fine. So I can't honestly say that. But I'm a guy, and she's…" he said lowering his voice progressively. "…well stunning. It's not hard to think about it."

"That's not all you think of her Dude. You'd have to be wearing sunglasses, following a dog and selling pencils not to see it. Chemistry like that is hard to hide. I would know, I've got a doctorate in it."

The guys then went back to discussing the actual case, but Hodgins noticed that Booth's eyes strayed towards her office more than usual. He looked over too, Brennan was talking to Angela about something very animatedly, walking around and waving her arms, sitting and then getting up again. He could tell that Booth was worried about her, what she thought of him, and how she was doing. He knew he could help ease the agent's mind.

"Hey Booth, I think there's something I should show you… I thought that I'd save it to give to your kids, but I think you might need it now."

Booth was really confused, but he was more curious than confused. When Hodgins returned with a hand in the pocket of his lab coat Booth got a little nervous, and of course, communicated this nervousness with a threat.

"Hodgins, if you are about to show me a bug or something slimy I swear to God I will shoot you."

He got his answer in the form of a chuckle from the scientist.

"No, it doesn't have any legs, but it still might scare you a little." He took his hand out of his pocket, and with it came a small evidence bag with a folded piece of dirty paper inside it. "It's from last year when Brennan and I were buried together. It ended up with my clothes at the hospital and after reading it I couldn't throw it away."

Hodgins sat down at his workstation and opened the bag, carefully unfolding the paper with gloved hands; he flattened it out enough for the agent to read the short note.

_ Booth, I once told you that I was very articulate on paper, but given the stress of my current situation I'm finding that my potential last words to you are hard to find. You and our partnership have meant more to me than I thought anyone or anything ever could again. Talking to you is always stimulating, and being around you is always an adventure. You are a wonderful man, and probably the best father your son could hope for. You helped me get out into the real world and then let me observe and discover what being alive is really about; you believed in me from the start, without question. And Seeley, if these do end up to be my last words, I want you to know that I believe in you. And since you believe so much in love, I'm going to say that I love you. Because I think I might anyways._

_ Ever,_

_ Temperance_

Hodgins waited for Booth to straighten up, then folded the note up and put it back into the plastic. As he turned around on the stool to hand it to the agent, he noticed the gaze that his two friends were exchanging. They stared at each other for what felt like hours without ceremony, searching deeply into the pair of eyes that returned their own like a mirror.

Hodgins smiled as Angela snuck up behind Brennan, and as his fiancé whispered in her ear he clapped Booth on the shoulder and congratulated him.

"Dude, it looks like she definitely might."

BB.BB.BB.BB.BB.BB

This chapters' review prize is a front row seat to our favorite couples' next big kiss scene… you know you want to get this one!!


	7. Carrots and Strawberries

I adore all my reviews! Thanks so so so much to all of you! I decided to combine these two words… hehe… just read.

…………………………..

I thought it just wasn't possible. It never happens. But this morning it did. Angela told me that it had happened once before, but I wouldn't believe her then. Now I guess I have no choice.

_Knock, Knock._

About a minute later the door of apartment 2B swung open to reveal my partner: a pajama-clad and very flustered looking anthropologist. Her hair wasn't in place, she was wearing sweatpants and an 'I've just been rudely woken up' face; but to me she still looked impossibly beautiful. I am in _so_ far over my head.

"Mornin' Bones. My, my, my, I see someone slept through their alarm."

She stammered some sort of greeting, the tone of her voice an odd mix of apologetic and sarcastic, then made her way over to the coffeemaker, nearly tripping over herself twice. She obviously needed some coffee. After filling it up and flipping it on she turned around and leaned on the counter, wiping a hand over her face and squinching her eyes shut. She looked at me, and I saw it finally registered in her brain that I was there. We exchanged actual greetings and then were silent, listening to the coffee brew. When it was ready, she smiled weakly and walked over to me offering me a steaming mug.

"So I guess Angela was right. You do occasionally act like a human being and oversleep."

The smile turned into a withering stare until she remembered just why it was that I was standing in her living room at 9:30 in the morning on a Tuesday.

"Booth, I'm so sorry! I honestly don't know what happened. Are you mad?"

I was almost appalled that she thought I would be mad at her… but then she doesn't live in my head and know all the other things I think about her.

"Course not Bones, I'm glad you got a good night's sleep. I've noticed that you don't do that a lot. And plus, we're not expected at the new crime scene until at least noon."

She handed me a mug and then took a sip of her own.

"I've got to take a shower Booth, but feel free to hang up until I'm ready."

"Out, Bones. Hang out... And sure, I'll wait for you, there's nothing we can really do without you anyways. And hey, don't you eat breakfast?"

She squirmed a little; knowing that the answer she was about to give would earn her a lecture. "No, I usually don't have time for breakfast."

I went into full-on first grade teacher impression, just because I knew it would make her crazy. 

"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, Bones. It makes you grow up strong and healthy, especially if you eat your green vegetables."

She mock-groaned and then giggled a little. I love to make her laugh. "I think you're the one who needs to grow up Booth."

"Mmmhmm…"

I seized her coffee mug, set it down and took her by the shoulders. Ushering her in the direction of her bathroom I laid down the law.

"Breakfast is important. It makes the whole day better. And to prove that, I'm going to make you some. Go get ready for the best breakfast of your life, courtesy of Seeley Booth Catering Incorporated."

Bones gave me one of her Mona Lisa smiles, and then disappeared.

And that's how I found myself in her immaculate kitchen, with half a pot of coffee and no idea what to make a Bones for breakfast. I began to look around.

"Hmmmmm… Bones, Bones, Bones… what do you have in your fridge? …Holy Crap!"

I had opened the vegetable drawer. "Oh Bones…" I laughed at what I had found, taking some out to work it into the omelet I was currently planning.

………………

"Stupid, Irrational, Illogical, Stupid…" I mentally berated myself the whole time I showered for oversleeping. How could I have done that? Gahh. Well, I guess it could have been worse, I could have had something really important to do this morning… and I was going to get a home-cooked breakfast out of the deal. It was so like Booth to take charge like that. Alpha-male. I thought for a moment and then grimaced slightly… I hope he _can _cook.

I was ready in about forty-five minutes, a pretty leisurely pace for me. Usually I'm up at five-thirty and into the lab by six. I wandered back into the bathroom and began my makeup, using a little less than usual because I would be doing retrieval at the crime-scene, which tended to get pretty gross unless the body was reduced to just bone, and by the looks of the pictures I'd been sent on my laptop the night before, it wasn't going to be.

I heard a clatter from the kitchen, followed by what I could only assume was a string of curses. "Fshhimoof…crealtshmanarrgh!"

Smirking a little to myself, I continued with my eyeliner. Obviously my Alpha-male provider had gotten a little sloppy with something either very hot or very sharp.

He wasn't looking when I padded back into the kitchen, carrying my boots in one hand and my kit in the other. He was focused on something on the counter in front of him, so I threw my stuff on the couch and leaned against the wall observing my partner at work in the kitchen.

He turned away from the counter, chewing on a carrot, and began to look for something. I was surprised that he hadn't noticed me yet, usually his sniper 'senses' kicked in when anyone was within twenty feet of him. He began to search more thoroughly, and I stood there wondering what the hell he was doing. He popped another small piece of carrot into his mouth, chewing exasperatedly as he grumbled to himself.

"…If I was a cereal bowl in Bones' kitchen, where would I live?"

I smiled again; he made me do that way too much. "Above the sink on the left Booth."

He finally reacted to my presence, which I had the sneaking feeling that he had known about the whole time I had been standing there.

"I see the lady hath completed her toilette…"

I rolled my eyes. "Sure Booth. Whatever you're making smells really good. Thanks for making me breakfast and everything."

A charm smile countered my gratitude. "For you, anything. Also, exploring your kitchen gave me many insights into the woman I know as Temperance Brennan."

"Such as…?" I was curious.

"Such as I had no idea that the woman I have spent almost the last three years working with has an unhealthy fetish for carrots and strawberries. You've got enough of those in your fridge to feed an army of horses and stock a roadside produce stand!" He threw open my fridge door with a flourish. "Look at this: baby carrots, sliced carrots, skinless carrots, carrots with the green stuff still on them…"

I nearly choked. I had forgotten that letting him into my kitchen meant he would be going through my fridge. Yikes.

"I know what is in my fridge Booth." I said feigning nonchalance. "So I like them?" He saw right through it and gave me an admonishing look. "Ok, so I like them a whole lot. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"Nothing at all. Actually that knowledge has proven pretty helpful already this morning. It helped me decide what to put in your omelet… I know carrots really aren't supposed to go in omelets, but I figured since you have a disproportionate obsession with them it would be acceptable."

He motioned for me to sit down and placed a plate and a bowl in front of me, and the sat down with his own. A giant, delicious looking omelet stuffed with ham and various other vegetables, carrots included, awaited me; along with a bowl of cornflakes adorned with a profuse amount of strawberries, he had even made a plate of carrot sticks just for fun. I was delighted, and I think he knew.

"Booth, no offense, but I don't think I can eat all of this!"

He chuckled and forked a piece of his omelet. "Just eat as much as you want Bones. Don't worry about finishing it."

We laughed, talked and ate for a while. The carrots were actually a great addition to the already appetizing eggs; I didn't really eat my cereal, just the sliced strawberries off the top. I wondered if Booth and I would do this again. I hoped we would. I wonder… I finished off the red slices deep in thought. He must have noticed because when I looked back up he made eye contact and grinned. He picked up a carrot stick and noisily bit off half of it.

"What's up, Doc?"

I laughed and rolled my eyes. For once I understood.

……………….

Review! I'll be out 'hunting Wabbits' for a while, but I'll update when I get back… hehe. I actually have had carrots in an omelet… it's not as weird as you might think.


	8. Burgundy

Thanks for all my fun reviews! And thank the snow for this chapter. No afternoon class for me means another chapter for you guys! I was feeling particularly sappy today, decorating my Christmas tree, and watching the snow fall outside as I wrote this sitting in my windowseat, so if it shows... sorry.

"CAM! I have to be at Parker's Tee-ball game in an hour!" Booth shouted as he continued pacing behind the large, locked, glass doors. He looked like a caged lion, one who was slowly realizing just how small his cage really was.

Cam frowned at his frustration, but knowing he wasn't really mad at her in particular made it a little better. Angela, always the peacemaker, stuck up for her.

"It's not her fault Booth. If you want someone to yell at, yell at Hodgins and Zach." She threw a death look towards the pair, one of whom, a certain forensic anthropologist, was currently covered in something gross. "…They were the ones who tripped the Biological Containment alarm… again."

Booth was suitably cowed by the reprimand. "Sorry Cam. I'm just annoyed. If I miss that game Rebecca is going to hold it over my head for years… just like she does with that disaster of a Christmas a year ago."

Her face softened a little as she accepted his apology. "It's ok Booth, but it is going to take at least 24 hours to get the lab cleared."

The squint squad, Booth included, collectively groaned; except for Angela, who smiled a wicked smile and slid her arm around her boyfriend's elbow. "Unlike the rest of you, Hodgy and I have lots to occupy ourselves with."

The faces that met that salacious comment were all over the map. Booth's eyes widened and went straight down to his shoes as his cheeks turned the deep red of Brennan's sweater and Cam's eyebrows literally hit the ceiling. Brennan gave Angela a 'you would say that, wouldn't you' look, which turned into a smirk when she noticed Booth's meticulous examination of the lab floor, and Zach just stared blankly around at the rest of them, wondering what the hell was going on.

…………………

Three hours and several games of gin rummy later Booth and Brennan were put in charge of dinner duty. Apparently their meal was going to be a mish-mash of whatever the lunchroom's fridge held: day old pizza from someone's birthday, an assortment of somewhat older chips and pretzels, half a gallon of ice-cream; on and on went the list of slightly less than appetizing food.

"Moldy sandwich comin' atcha Bones!" Booth warned as he tossed the decaying plastic bag in the direction of his trash can manning partner.

She grimaced. "Yuck. Ok. _That_ is exactly why I have my own fridge in my office. Dead bodies I can handle, but green roast beef… that's a bit over my grotesque-ness threshold."

He ducked back out of the seemingly endless fridge and chuckled at her adorable scowl.

"You think this is bad? You should stop over and look in the FBI's fridge… I stopped putting my lunch in there after stuff started growing on it."

"There's nothing worth eating in there Booth, and we have the pizza; can we just be done?"

"I guess so." He answered stooping back down to stuff various bags back onto the shelves. " Geez Bones, I can't even see to the back…" He turned and looked back at her, a charm smile threatening to emerge. "Bones, I think your lunchroom fridge is the portal to Narnia."

"I don't know what that means."

He laughed. "Forget it. You wanna go call everybody for dinner? Beware of Angela's office though, there's a 'Disturb at risk to own mental images of your colleagues' sign on her door."

Brennan rolled her eyes at Booth's suggestive eyebrow waggle. "I'll be careful."

She pushed open the door, and the sounds of the lab came rushing inside, only then to suddenly cease as the heavy glass swung back into place. Booth relaxed against the stainless steel counter and examined his surroundings. The room looked about the same as the rest of the lab, clean and cold, except, he noticed, for a small mahogany cabinet, tucked in a corner, ostensibly forgotten about. He felt somewhat of an affinity with it, a small piece of beautiful old-world charm surrounded by all this technology and science. Just like him. He opened it up and a child-like grin spread over his face. Yes! He pumped his fist in the air, mimicking Parker's current reaction to surprises.

At that moment the squint squad entered behind him. He stood up and held out the discovered box in front of him. His friends reacted exactly like he thought they would

"Booth? I don't know what that is."

"Dude! Nice. I had forgotten that was there!"

"Yay! Candyland! Let's play!"

"Oh lord, Seeley. How old are you?"

"No way, against all logical probabilities I always lose that game. To six year-olds."

………………….

"So the object is to get to the candy castle? That seems too easy" Her eyes met his as they peered over the candy cane-colored sheet of instructions and rules.

Booth shook his head at the highly amused but perplexed anthropologist. "It's supposed to be for four year-olds Bones, and I refuse to believe that you got through your entire childhood without playing this at least once."

"Yea Sweetie, you must have played it at least once!"

"I don't remember playing."

"Well Bones, now you get to learn. Now, _he_ goes at the 'Start' over here." He instructed, handing her the red playing piece. Hodgins took the green piece and handed Angela the yellow, then tossed Booth the blue.

"Booth, Why do I automatically get the red one? You let Angela and Hodgins pick."

"Red's your favorite color Bones."

"I know. But you don't know that."

"I know a lot more than you think."

Hodgins and Angela shared a knowing smirk and a small head shake before shuffling their halves of the colored cards and putting them together.

"Ok squints," Booth gloated rubbing his palms together in preparation "…now you get to see a real Candyland master at work! Get ready to lose!"

"Booth, this is a game of pure chance. You can't try to win."

"Yea Bones. Whatever you say."

…………………

Five games of Candyland later, Brennan wasn't so sure of her earlier statement. Booth had won every game except one. Angela had won the last one, and then in the middle of her victory dance, was swept off her feet by a nearby entomologist and carried off to her office.

Brennan sat in her office finishing off a chapter of her book while Booth napped on her couch. She clicked out of the word document, and for just a moment, let herself watch him sleep. He slept peacefully; no snoring, no fidgeting or moving around. Just breathe in, breathe out. Simple. Easy. Like everything seemed with him. He just seemed to know everything that mattered; her favorite color. How _did_ he know things like that?

Like any good scientist, she just had to find out.

………………..

Seeley Booth was enjoying himself. He was walking along a peaceful snowy river holding hands with a woman, his wife. Her hand was small, but fit perfectly inside his larger one. He knew she was smiling, but couldn't see her face. They walked in silence and he felt content. All of a sudden she poked him in the shoulder and disappeared. He was alone now but heard a muffled sound. "Buuucsh?" He was poked again and heard the sound much clearer. "Booth?" Someone was calling his name. Bones. He woke from his dream and grabbed at the poking hand.

"Boooones…" He groaned, eyes still closed. "I was asleep. Eyes closed. Laying Down. Sweet Dreams. Ever experienced that?"

"I want to know something."

"It can't wait until my nap is over?"

"I think technically it is over, since you woke up."

He opened his brown eyes and found himself staring into big blue ones. He forgot to breathe, but just for a second.

"K. Shoot."

"Does that mean 'ask'?"

He sat up, the old Peruvian blanket he had been covered with falling between his legs. He tried to stretch his arms out, but realized he still had a hold on her hand. He pulled her down beside him. "Yea, it does. So ask already."

"How did you know that my favorite color was red?"

A goofy Booth smile accompanied his correction. "Your favorite color isn't red. It's burgundy. But you'll take red if it's the closest."

She couldn't help but gawk open-mouthed at him for a minute before recovering the power of speech. "Ok. How do you know that? Did Angela tell you?"

"I know that because I know you. I do." He reassured her, beginning to rub small circles on the back of the hand he was currently holding hostage. "You love your burgundy sweater. It's your favorite; you're even wearing it today. You've painted almost your whole apartment burgundy. The living room, the guest room, the bathroom… your favorite tie of mine is burgundy; in fact, it's the only tie of mine you've specifically said you liked… should I keep going?"

Again her mouth was hanging open. "No… I guess that's enough. I'm just not used to people noticing things like that, but apparently I underestimated your capacity for reading people."

Booth leaned closer, a rather quixotic smile gracing his lips and a sparkle of charm in his eyes. He wanted her to hear it from him. He adopted a semi-serious tone as he stilled his hand, stared into her eyes and explained; "That's my job Bones. I take it seriously, and there's no other squint I'd rather pay attention to."

Her heart suddenly felt much too big and she shyly broke eye contact. Seconds later, her lips were pursed together in amusement at her G-man partner, who had dropped her hand and flung himself back down and covered his head with the black and white patterned blanket. She couldn't tell, but his juvenile gesture was just a way to keep himself from losing control and kissing his adorable anthropologist. It had taken her shy head duck to make him realize that the beautiful wife from his dreams, the one whose face had been hidden, but whose hand was unmistakable, was sitting next to him on a burgundy couch.

He currently couldn't breathe, so he whined instead.

"I've answered your question Bones, so can I go back to sleep? And this time, if you have a question, ask me tomorrow. I'll be here. Just like always."

"Sure." She half-whispered. "I won't wake you anymore."

He noticed things about her. He always wanted to know where she was, physically and emotionally. He really was always there. Walking towards the door, she had a flashback to a conversation with Angela during her mother's case a year before.

"_Suddenly no one cared where I was. I miss that. Someone caring where I am, all the time."_

She watched him try to fall back asleep.

He cares.

Hey! Reviews are fun! Don't believe me? Give it a try!


	9. Emerald

Booth had a sixth sense. His partner wouldn't believe it, but he sometimes he could just know that something was wrong. That something that night led him to go and open his front door. He was fully expecting to see the empty beige colored hall, but when he opened the door he found something else entirely. Leaning against the doorframe, with tear stained cheeks, a bandaged wrist and a bruised forehead, was D.C.'s top forensic anthropologist. She didn't say a word, she didn't have to; he pulled her inside without a second thought.

"Bones? What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Nothing. I just wanted… well I don't really know what I wanted…"

He wasn't convinced at all. "Booones…" He warned. "You can't stand there crying and tell me everything is alright. Tell me what's up. You aren't fine."

"No. I guess I'm not." She shut her eyes and swallowed hard. "My head hurts from New Orleans, and my head hurting reminds me of the case."

"Oh, Bones." He breathed, heart swelling with concern. She had nearly been killed and couldn't remember a thing. But she had come through in the end, just like always. The flight home had been silent; they had met the others at the lab for a while and she had seemed nearly normal, and when he had dropped her off at her apartment she had assured him that she was fine, but he knew otherwise. At least she had come to him instead of going to the lab and working herself to death.

"He killed his own daughter. I understand why he did it… but I just can't comprehend how. How could you do that to someone you raised and cared for? To someone who depended on you?" More tears began the journey down her cheeks, but she wiped them clean, trying to keep herself from the emotions she was obviously being overloaded with. "I don't know why this is affecting me so much… I see stuff like this everyday."

Booth stepped next to her and rubbed a reassuring hand across the back of her shoulders. "You're not really up to full strength yet Bones. Give it time. You'll be back kicking my butt around the lab by mid-next week."

She sniffled a little as she smiled weakly at him. "Thanks Booth."

He wanted her to stay; he wanted to make sure she really was ok before he let her go home.

"Hey Bones, why don't you stick around? We're both alone tonight, we can be alone together."

"Sure." She was feeling much better just being with another person and she had been hoping he would let her stay. "What are we going to do?"

"It's your lucky night." He sat down on the oversized denim couch and picked up the TV remote, flicking the set on. "Because I'm going to introduce you to the art of channel surfing."

"I don't know what that means."

"I know; that's why I'm going to teach you. Channel surfing is something you do when you're bored, you turn on the TV and just look through the channels, seeing if you can find anything that interests you."

She sat down beside him, looking expectantly between the remote and the TV. "Sounds easy enough. Are there rules?"

He smiled at her typical squint-ness. "Nope. That's the beauty of it, you just click around and stop when you see something cool, and then move on when it gets boring."

She was satisfied, but curious about how this concept would really work. "Ok then. Let's surf."

……………

"Hey, Hey. Booth, go back. That was a documentary on the spotted owl that Hodgins said I should see."

"Aaaabsolutely not."

She frowned. "Fine." One more channel and her face went back to intrigued. "Oooh, Booth, can we watch this?" They had stumbled upon yet another documentary, one about Benjamin Franklin.

"No dice Bones. We're looking for whimsy, something fun to take our minds off of the real world."

"Then how about that show you stopped at a while back… The one about tattoos?"

"Angela was right. You really don't understand the concept of whimsy do you?" He kept flicking channels. 55. 54. 53. 52. 5…

"Wait! Stop here. Booth, I know this movie!"

He looked up and focused on the screen. A rag-tag foursome filled the screen, walking along a yellow path and singing a familiar song. He almost burst out laughing. No, he did burst out laughing.

"_The Wizard of Oz_?! Of course you know it. It's like the most popular kids movie in the world Bones."

"Is that what it's called? I remember watching this as a kid when I lived in Ohio. I think it was Russ and I's favorite. We watched it like a hundred times or something."

"Probably. It was my favorite for a while too." He grinned remembering watching it over and over on the family room floor when he was about six. "I haven't seen it in years. We can watch this if you want. It definitely fulfills the whimsy requirement."

As Dorothy and her friends made their way along the yellow brick road, Booth saw a change in his partner. She was relaxing, becoming the woman he knew was buried under all the bones and scientific words; underneath the objectivity and the logic; the girl he knew was inside the scientist; the girl who just desperately wanted to wear her mother's favorite earrings.

They laughed together at the scarecrow and the lion, and Booth sang the songs he knew so well from watching it with Parker. Brennan surprised him and started to sing some of them too. "We're off to see the wizard…"

………………….

By the end of the movie they had reclined back into Booth's overstuffed sofa, comfortably shoulder to shoulder with their feet up on his coffee table next to what remained of a bowl of popcorn. Brennan's arms crossed in front of her on top of her stomach and the sides of their heads were resting together, supporting each other.

"Booth, why would someone make an entire city out of emeralds?"

"No idea Bones."

She giggled a little at his nonchalant answer. _Emeralds…_

"Wait a second!" She sat up so fast that Booth nearly lost his balance and fell behind her.

"A little warning would be nice Bones." He groaned running a hand through his hair as he sat up. He noticed that she was smiling, smiling as broadly as he had ever seen her. It wasn't just a smile. It was a grin. Dr. Temperance Brennan was grinning like a five year old on Christmas morning. "What's so funny Bones?"

"Russ named our first pet dog Emerald. And now I know why."

_Channel surfing was such a good idea._

…………………

17 days til' Christmas!!! Does that make you excited enough to review?


	10. Cerulean

Sorry about the gaping chasm between last update and this one, but Finals week is upon me, and I'm surprised I even had time to write this chapter… But the good news is that since they are almost over, I've got a free week before Christmas, so you guys can expect chapters about once a day! I had this idea for this word a while ago and couldn't wait to write it… enjoy!

…………………..

Brennan walked down the taupe colored hall quickly. It was a Saturday morning and after her latest case with Booth, she had 'limbo' victims to catch up on. Just one more stop before she could get to the lab.

…5A… 7A… 9A…

She glanced back down at the yellow post-it she was nervously sticking and unsticking to the side of her index finger.

"11A, this is it."

She knocked. Nothing. Again. Nothing. Sighing, she leaned against the doorframe. He had to be home. He was the one who always said that Saturdays were for relaxing, and that she should do it more often. So she knocked again, this time hearing a small screech as something was pushed up against the door. Intrigued, she listened for more. She heard someone climb onto whatever it was, pause for a moment and then jump off. The screech came again, and seconds later the door flew open.

"Hi Bones!" The little blond boy exclaimed excitedly, giving her a smile that reminded Brennan of a certain FBI agent.

She smiled widely; Parker was one cute kid. She had had dinner with him and Booth once or twice at Wong Foo's after she had first met him at Christmas. At almost five years old, he was quite the entertainer, always singing and telling stories that made no sense. He took her by the hand and pulled her inside.

"Did you come to go to the park with us? That's what me and Daddy do every Saturday. I told him to tell you that you could come too."

"Thanks Parker, but I just came over to get your Dad to sign a couple work papers. Where is your Dad by the way?"

"Daddy's in the shower. When you knocked on the door I yelled and told him that somebody was at the door and he yelled for me to look through the peephole, 'cause its my favorite, and then if I knew the person I could let them in and if it was a stranger I should come back and tell him. But it was you so I let you in."

She smiled at his lengthy explanation and earnest expression. "Ok, I guess I can just leave them on the table and get them back later. Do you think you can tell him that I dropped them off?"

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to go to my lab." She considered his confused expression for a minute. "… The lab is where I work, my friends and I help your Dad catch bad guys."

"But Dr. Bones, it's a Saturday! Big people don't have to work on Saturdays! 'cept for my friend Jason, 'cause his Daddy speaks at a sin… sinygolf… he's a Rabbit, like Father James at Sunday school."

It took Brennan a second to catch up, and in that few seconds she had been taken by the hand and led into Parker's brightly colored bedroom.

"Since you don't have to go to work you can stay and play with me! We can color!"

He pointed a chubby finger at a small child's play table littered with crayons and coloring books. Brennan had the impulse to bolt. She liked kids, but playing with them? That could prove to be a problem.

She wavered, looking from the boy to the door; "I don't know if I should Parker…" his bright smile disappeared in a flash, replaced by a pout and pair of sad puppy eyes. One look at him and Brennan nearly sprinted to the pint-sized table to color. As he handed her a coloring book, she smiled softly and thought about how similar he was to his father, and how similarly successful he was at getting her to do things.

Booth had gotten dressed by this time, and stepped out of the bathroom to see where Parker had gotten to. He didn't see him in the living room, the door was shut and locked from the inside, so he was here somewhere… He heard low voices from down the hall; Parker was talking to someone, but who? He remembered the knock on the door and then heard a familiar laugh. Bones was here, in his apartment, on a Saturday, playing with his son?

He walked down the hall and peered into Parker's room. There, in a too-small chair, coloring a picture of a dolphin with Crayola crayons, was Dr. Temperance Brennan, Ph.D. and anthropologist extraordinaire. He almost laughed at the comic scene, but was struck suddenly with what exactly was happening right before his eyes. Bones, his Bones, the 'for the millionth time Booth, I don't want kids' Bones, was laughing and chatting with a five year old, her expression clearly full of care and compassion. He could have stood there forever, just watching the two people he cared most about interact, but she eventually noticed him. She looked up apologetically.

"Hey Booth, I came to bring you some paperwork I need signed and Parker invited me to color with him. Is that ok?"

He loved that no matter how confident she was; underneath it all she still had insecurities just like everyone else.

"Course it's ok. Parker lives to color. Don'cha Bud?"

A little fist shot into the air. "Yea! Coloring is flamtastic!"

"Actually…"

"Just let it go Bones."

He glanced down at her coloring page.

"All neatly in the lines I see." He teased. "But I wouldn't expect anything else from a squint."

"I guess all that precise rational scientist training makes me the perfect colorer." She kidded back with a smirk. He grinned.

They colored for a few more minutes, Booth helping Parker with his picture of a farmyard, which had become a bit more colorful than reality dictated, but a masterpiece nonetheless. Parker then announced that he was going to be a superhero today and went off in search of a proper cape and sidekick, leaving his Dad and Dr. Bones to finish coloring the barn an appropriate shade of bright purple. She finished her own page and held it up mock-proudly.

He considered his partner's perfect coloring job, tapping his chin mock-thoughtfully. "Nice Bones. I particularly enjoy your use of Cerulean."

A hint of surprise appeared in her eyes along with the normal sparkle they held when she was amused. "That's a big word for you Booth. Most people just call it blue. Except for Angela."

"Not when you're talking about Crayola. The cerulean crayon is famous. And it has sparked many an interesting conversation; most interesting of them being the two bucks I won from Jimmy Wilson in the first grade for knowing how the word was pronounced. It's also the most fun to say of any color name. Cerulean… and you know Bones, it's also the color of your eyes."

She laughed. "Cerulean eyes… I don't know how I feel about having crayon colored eyes Booth." She held up her coloring page again considering it with a look of fondness she had rarely expressed in his presence. "I guess it's a pretty color for eyes though. Very serene and beautiful."

"Definitely." He met her eyes over the flimsy page and held their gaze long enough to breathe a single word. "Beautiful."

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Review, so I can procrastinate studying and write some more!


	11. October

Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I love love love the feedback!

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"The body was discovered just below this bluff. The couple who discovered it were in the middle of a romantic Sunday-afternoon walk… which ended pretty abruptly. The local Coroner brought us in for identification." Cam explained and motioned over to the young couple sitting on the back of a patrol car talking to one of the local cops as she lead the partners down a grassy hill. "The middle of a countryside meadow just outside the Baltimore suburbs isn't really somewhere you'd expect to find human remains, especially on a date." She said as she and Brennan knelt down to begin examining the body.

"Finding a decomposed corpse? Yea, that'd be a definite mood killer." Booth and Cam shared a friendly grin before being interrupted by Brennan's preliminary findings.

"Male. Caucasian. Late thirties- early forties. Not well muscled, his job obviously didn't involve manual labor. Cause of death right now looks like sharp-force trauma to the temporal bone. Though decomp suggests about 9 days, I'd say he's been out here almost two weeks. The weather in early October is cool enough to slow decomp, but not by much"

Booth finished writing down her findings and flipped his notebook shut. "K Bones, so where are we going from here?"

"The victim has some visible professional dental work, after we get him back to the lab we should be able to ID him by records."

She sighed and stood up and addressed the two interns standing nearby. "We'll need full evidence retrieval; soil samples to three inches, samples of surrounding flora, and as many pictures as you can manage. Hodgins is definitely going to earn his keep on this one."

The taller intern, a redheaded boy answered. "It'll take us a couple hours Dr. Brennan. We'll call you when the evidence and remains are ready for transport."

"Alright then…" Booth said steering Brennan away from the crime scene epicenter and the pre-squints. "We're going to take a look around while they do that."

"Okay."

They walked through the meadow aimlessly, both pretending to 'look for evidence' as they enjoyed the azure mid-autumn sky and the haze of red and orange trees in the distance. Their long coats flapped behind them in the crisp breeze; the weather just cool enough that a suit jacket wouldn't quite keep you comfortable. Where the grass was tall, it was turning yellow and Brennan unconsciously brushed her palms along the tops. Booth had his hands in his pockets and his eyes on the mountains in the distance. Brennan slowed to a stop in the middle of a patch of black-eyed-susans and watched the black shape of a hawk float and soar through the cloudless air.

Booth got about twenty yards further before noticing that he was alone. He turned around and spotted her.

"Bones?"

She didn't answer him. She was in her own world. He walked over and waved a hand in front of her unfocused eyes.

"Earth to Bones…"

Her eyes shut tight and she shook her head, awakening from her daydream.

She focused on him with a soft look in her eyes. "Sorry Booth, I guess I was just spacing down."

"Out. Spacing out. And you've been doing it a lot lately. Is something bothering you? You're not getting that seasonal depression thing Zach was depressing us with the other day are you?"

"No, the opposite actually. I love October; the landscape is so beautiful. And…" She bit her bottom lip in hesitation. "… and it's just really pretty."

"Bones… remember that I can tell when you aren't being straight with me. So what's up? Why specifically October instead of just Fall?"

She went quiet again, turning her attention back to the sky, and after a few moments Booth decided she wasn't going to answer him so he stepped beside her and watched the graceful dips and dives of the hawk, as he floated farther and farther away. When it became too small to see, Brennan looked down at the yellow flowers that surrounded her boots and then up at her partner.

When she finally spoke her voice was barely more than a murmur. "Picnics. My family loved picnics. My last vivid memory of my family before my parents disappeared was that October, a family picnic in our backyard. It was a day just like this. I was so happy; we were so happy, and the memory of that day soon became my favorite. It got me through the winter and the fifteen years after that. But just now I realized that hadn't thought about it for a couple years."

"A couple years? …So you've been happier now that I'm in your life?" he asked, waggling his eyebrows with a facetious smile.

She hit him on the shoulder playfully with the back of her hand. "Very funny Booth. But actually, I guess you were the one who helped me see that friends can be just as good as family… maybe even better."

"I did, did I?" He said proudly, slinging a friendly arm around her shoulders and continuing their leisurely walk.

"So you think we'll ID this guy today?"

They reached the edge of the meadow, where a white clapboard fence separated them from the single lane asphalt road beyond.

"I don't know Booth. Probably."

Across the road stood a small white chapel with a set of deep red doors. The sign in front of it read 'Pray for Pastor Mike. Missing since 10/01'.

They exchanged looks.

"Definitely."

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People who review always get on Santa's 'nice' list... haha... I'm shameless.

What do you guy think of giving a fanfic story as a Christmas present? My cousins love Bones and I thought maybe some of this story ( or another one) would make a fun gift...


	12. April and Blackbird

"We're very sorry for your loss Mr. and Mrs. Castle" Booth solemnly offered the miserable couple, knowing full well his feeble contribution wouldn't make the loss of their eleven-year-old any lighter.

Brennan observed the couple with wide eyes. She would never, never, get used to this: seeing the stunned, shocked and desperate faces of murdered children's parents. Talking to families was still relatively new to her; Booth had been doing it for years; he said that you eventually develop a tolerance to it, you never totally acclimate to it, but you can learn to stand it. She hadn't thought about this part of the job when she demanded to be a part of the whole case, and not just lab work. It was awful, seeing the devastation, but it made her want to catch the murderers even more.

"I just want to know if she suffered. I need to know."

Had April Castle suffered? Yea. Being stabbed seven times would fall under suffering. But Booth knew what they wanted was closure.

"She never saw it coming."

The level of relief that flooded into their eyes was almost criminal, but after the case with Cleo Eller, Brennan understood why Booth lied to parents. She'd have wanted that if she was sitting across from herself at this moment.

Booth regained eye contact with Mrs. Castle. "We would like to take a look around April's room. Is that ok?"

The blond woman stood and wiped a few tears from her cheeks, taking a deep breath in. "Of course. Right this way."

The partners were led to a spacious loft above the family's garage. April's mother ushered them in and found that she couldn't bear to be in her daughter's room. "Feel free to look anywhere. Mike and I will be downstairs if you have anymore questions."

Booth took one look around with his mouth hanging open before stating the obvious. "This is the coolest room. Ever."

Brennan silently agreed and gaped along with him. April's room was indeed the coolest child's room she had ever seen. The sloping roof had colorful sheers draping from it to the walls, the sunlight from humongous windows shining on and through them, creating a spectrum of colored shapes everywhere. As well as a queen-sized bed, she had been supplied with a couch and an armchair. One wall was apparently painted with chalkboard paint, and chalk drawings of flowers, birds and trees covered most of it. This girl had been loved, and maybe spoiled, but definitely loved; that much was clear.

"She was a creative girl." Brennan said running her fingers over some of the drawings.

"Lots of friends too, her address book is nearly full." Booth said after flipping through the lime green book. He looked at her bookshelf. "Lots of handmade books, seems like our girl was a writer…"

"Hey Booth, wh… oh…" Brennan's voice came from behind him, trailing off into silence. He turned to find her staring at April's bed.

"Bones?" He asked warily walking up behind her. "What is it?"

"Nothing Booth… It's just that… I had this when I was little." His eyes followed her finger to a small vintage looking doll with curly dark ringlets and a porcelain face.

"She was a tenth birthday present, my mother thought that I was finally old enough to have a real doll. She was one of the last things to get broken by a foster parent before I got out of the system. My foster father threw it across the room and shattered her face."

"Wow. Bones, I'm so sorry." Booth's heart went out to his suddenly solemn partner as he stared into the doll's face, trying to keep images of it shattering against the wall and a sixteen year-old Bones bursting into tears from his mind. He rested a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

She looked at him, grateful for the simple supportive touches he always knew when to give. "I'm ok. The odd thing is though, her name was April."

"Whose?"

"My doll's."

"That is weird Bones… just one of those things I guess. Hey look at this…" Booth had found a small tape recorder. He rewound a minute or two and hit 'play'. A sweet sounding birdcall reached their ears. Brennan closed her eyes and listened closely.

"Terdus merula; the common Blackbird." She determined and opened her eyes with a small smile.

"Birdwatch much Bones?" He said with raised eyebrows and a skeptical grin.

"Very funny. And though Hodgins did try to take me, Zach and Angela once, No, I don't birdwatch."

"Then how the hell do you know that?"

"It was my father's favorite. He could imitate one pretty well too. Like this." She let loose a high-pitched bird call that exactly answered the one coming from the tape.

Booth almost laughed. "Does the Audubon Society know about you Bones?"

She ceased her blackbird imitation and gave him a smirk. "Hey, I know what that means."

He did laugh. " You would know that one wouldn't you?"

Brennan nodded and returned to 'anthropologist/crime fighter' mode. "Why do you think April had a tape of bird calls in her room?"

"No idea, but her parents might know;" he said placing the tape recorder back on the table and moving his hand to the small of her back to start leading her towards the door. "…Which is why I asked to look around before I asked them too many questions."

She considered this. "That's logical."

"I know."

Reaching for the doorknob, she rolled her eyes in his direction. Before she stepped out though, Booth saw her peek back over his shoulder at April's doll. She really liked that thing. He glanced at it and chuckled to himself, wondering how many E-bay hours he'll have logged before he finds one for her.

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I've decided to use five or six chapters to make a shortened version for my cousins Christmas gifts… so if you review you can also vote for your top favorite chapters!


	13. Aristotle

Thanks so much for your wonderful reviews! This chapter was really fun to write, and to think, it took me forever to figure out what to write about… enjoy!

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"Good Morning Washington! Today on our program we are joined by forensic anthropologist and best selling author: Dr. Temperance Brennan; along with her partner from the FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth…" The happy peppy young blond woman whose name Brennan had already forgotten went on and on. She smiled a little at the camera; wondering what Booth was thinking behind his similarly fake grin.

"…and before we get to that…" Geeze, this woman had yet to breathe in her marathon speech. Bored and slightly nervous about being on TV for the first time, Booth looked over at his partner, whose plastic smile almost made him smile for real.

"…so here's Douglas with your weather forecast for the rest of the week." She finally took a breath. And then started in on the two of them.

"Dr. Brennan before we go back on air I'd just like to tell you that I'm one of your biggest fans Kathy Reichs is my favorite book character, like, ever and Agent Booth totally feel free to answer any questions that you'd like the interview isn't just for Dr. Brennan's book it's an awesome opportunity to spread goodwill from the FBI Of course if you feel more comfortable not answering any that's totally fine too."

Booth and Brennan both nodded at their enthusiastic interviewer, and then exchanged looks of incredulity, wondering how on earth she managed to get all those words out of her mouth in one breath. Brennan shrugged and picked up the Channel 5 mug from the table in front of her; marveling that it was, indeed, empty. Booth met her eyes and grinned, knowing exactly what she was thinking. His grin made her want to laugh, but before she could, a loud voice came from behind the cameras and blinding spotlights. "Thirty Seconds Charlotte!"

_That was her name!_ Brennan repeated it a few times so she wouldn't forget. _How did I get roped into another one of these silly interviews? My publicist is much too persuasive and manipulative. I'm no good at this. _ The red lights on the cameras flashed twice and remained steady as 'Charlotte Collins D.C. Channel 5' took another monumental breath in. _Here we go again._

"Welcome Back Washington! Hope the weather was in your favor! Now, on to our special interview for the morning."

She turned to the partners and flashed a giant white smile.

"Good morning Dr. Brennan, Agent Booth. I'm so glad you could join us today."

Booth went into sappy 'talking to criminal's wives' voice. "It's our pleasure Charlotte. We're so happy to have this opportunity. And we just love your show." Brennan had to control her impulse to laugh, because only she knew what his voice actually meant.

"Well thanks Agent Booth! Now Dr. Brennan, can you tell us what exactly a forensic anthropologist does?"

Brennan obliged, happy that the question was straightforward. Booth watched her face as she talked about the job she loved. Her whole demeanor changed when she talked about the Jeffersonian and her work with him; her face light up with the passion she usually held so deep inside. When she had finished a short outline of her basic duties and her qualifications, she waited for the second question with bated breath, wondering if it would be so easy as the first. The woman picked up a pile of index cards, and Brennan shot Booth a sly grin, still trying not to laugh. He only smiled.

"So Dr. Brennan…" 'Charlotte Collins D.C. Channel 5' said consulting an index card with various questions on it; "…what person would you say has had the biggest impact on your career?"

She couldn't stand it anymore. Brennan burst out laughing and Booth began to chuckle, leaving their interviewer slightly bewildered. "What's so funny?"

The partners traded grins and Booth tried to explain. "Well you see…

…(14 Hours earlier)…

_Bang! Bang! BangBangBang!_ Brennan knocked on his door furiously, praying to God (If she believed in him) that Booth was home. After the first string of knocks she waited a second, then went to begin another but her fist collided with another solid object, producing a muffled 'thump' instead of a loud echoing crack.

"Trying to break down my door, then beating me up when I open it eh? Is that any way to treat your partner?"

"I didn't mean to hit your chest Booth, you opened the door just as…"

He interrupted her with a smile. "Joke, Bones. That was a joke. So what's up?"

She nervously squirmed a little before answering him all in a rush. "My publicist is making me do another TV interview tomorrow morning, and I know that I'm no good at them so I was wondering if you maybe had any advice or could maybe, you know, …rehearse with me?" She shut her eyes tightly; anticipating the inevitable laugher, but it never came. She opened one eye slowly, and seeing nothing like laughter in his expression, she opened the other.

"Sure Bones. I'd love to help."

"Really? Thanks!"

He opened the door widely, allowing her to step in. "Course."

She walked over and sat down on his couch anxiously fingering the strings on the end of her red scarf. Booth noticed her apprehension and realized that he'd never seen that side of her.

"Bones, I don't think I've ever seen you nervous about anything." He said crossing the room and standing in front of her.

"That's because you never see me doing anything that I'm not good at. Everyone gets nervous, it just depends on what they're doing."

"Alright, let's get down to it then. What makes you nervous about interviews?"

"I don't like the personal questions that they ask, I find them hard to answer on the spot like that. And I always say the wrong thing, making me sound like a moron."

His face softened a bit as he reassured her. "You're not a moron."

She smiled up at him a cloud still hanging in her expression. "I know that. But I can still sound like one from time to time."

"So you don't like answering the questions…hmmm…" he paused for a minute tapping his chin thoughtfully and then sprung into action. He bounded across the room and pushed an armchair up next to the sofa, and then went to the kitchen and brought back two empty mugs and some blank index cards, placing the mugs on the coffee table in front of them. He sat down in the armchair with the cards held in front of him. She gave him a bewildered look.

"What are you doing?"

"You said you didn't like answering the questions, so I'm going to ask you some common interview questions, and you can get answers ready for the real thing."

"Ok. But what is with moving the armchair, the mugs and the index cards?"

He chuckled " I'm setting the scene for ya Bones, these…" He explained motioning to the objects, "…are all essential TV interview things. The interviewer usually sits in a big armchair, and asks questions from index cards. And there are always random mugs on the coffee table."

"But there's nothing in the mugs."

"There never is."

"But that's ridiculous."

"Yup. You'll see tomorrow."

She raised her eyebrows, unconvinced but interested. "So ask me a question already."

Booth sat back and thought for a minute. Then, in his best interviewer voice, sounding a bit like Julia Child on meth, he asked his first question.

"Sooo Doc-tor Brrrrennan, what person would you say has had the biggest impact on your career?"

Her eyebrows went even farther up and her eyes lit up in amusement before she thought about his question and answered him seriously.

"Aristotle."

It was Booth's turn to raise his eyebrows. The drugged Julia Child voice disappeared as he repeated her.

"Aristotle?"

"Aristotle." She deadpanned in reply.

"Oook. Not exactly what we were going for. But first of all Bones, when you are on TV you've gotta expand a little on your answers, throw in a funny story or an explanation of why you answered like that. And second of all, Aristotle!?"

"I said Aristotle because he's the father of logic, and I use logic every day in my work. He's also been my favorite scientist since I was twelve, and mostly the reason I liked science class so much. Without Aristotle, I probably wouldn't be a forensic anthropologist. I'd say that's impactful. Wouldn't you?

"Yea… but it can't be a dead person Bones."

"Why not? You yourself said that most of my relationships are with dead people."

He immediately regretted ever saying that to her. "I did say that." He explained more gently; "But what this question is asking is a little different from what it sounds like. What the interviewer is fishing for is an inspirational story of the person who you base your life around: the person who keeps you going, and searching for answers. Someone like your best friend, one of your parents or something like that."

She contemplated this concept for a moment and then met his eyes with a grave stare.

"But that's you Booth."

"Me?"

"You. You're the person who keeps me going and looking for the evidence. I want to solve the murders for the victims of course, but it's also for you. You got me out of the lab and always push me to figure out what I don't know about the world. Sometimes I want to prove you wrong, and sometimes I have to prove you right. I can always come to you to argue or for help. You've helped make me who I am, Booth, but you're better than a best friend or a parent. You're my partner."

"And you're mine."

They shared a smile for a few moments longer until Booth spoke up in classic alpha-male fashion.

"And as your partner, I'm supposed to be here for you, so I guess I'll just have to be there for you too."

"Where for me?"

"At the interview. I can provide moral support, and field any questions that catch you off guard."

"Seriously?"

"Yea."

With that one word, he suddenly found himself in her arms. She hugged him tightly, so grateful to have such a good friend in Seeley Booth. He gave her a squeeze back and then let go.

"So you're gonna let me come without a fight?"

Her mouth quirked to the side for a minute before she responded; "On one condition." She began seriously, and then grinned as she filled him in on the terms. "You never ever use that creepy voice again."

"Done. And I'll come with you on one condition." He said giving her a charm smile.

"Ok. What is it?"

"That we go get some pie right now. I'm starved."

She gave him a look of reproving disbelief and stood up. "Sure Booth. We can go get some pie, as long as you keep interviewing me."

He followed her out the door locking it behind him, and then walked beside her into the elevator. He looked over at her as she pressed the 'L' button and just before the doors slid closed he shook his head and asked again, his voice more sarcastic than querying.

"Aristotle?"

She shot him an evil look.

"Shut up."

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Hehe. My Christmas wish is that you would review… and you wouldn't want to deny me my Christmas wish, now would you?

And if you didn't already, or you want to again, you can vote on your favorite few chapters to be included in a Christmas present for my cousins… everyone seems to agree on Lunate, Cerulean and Burgundy…


	14. Gershwin, Radiohead and Poco

Thanks to everyone who reviewed! This chapter goes with three songs: George Gershwin's 'Rhapsody in Blue', Radiohead's 'Bodysnatchers', and Poco's 'Keep on Trying"… you don't really have to have heard any of them to understand the chapter, but I thought I'd avoid the 'what song were you talking about?' questions… and yes, I also realize that the timeline of the show doesn't really fit in this chapter, so if you're one of those people who can't stand that… sorry, just pretend that this takes place in the future.

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Booth spoke while sauntering into his partners office, it being four o'clock on a Tuesday, he fully expected her to be hard at work.

"Bones I need your findings on the O'Donnell case. The prosecutor said he was going to have my head if I didn't get them to him by tomorrow, and you wouldn't want a headless partner now would you?"

If he hadn't been looking down at the file in his hands, he would have noticed that it was not his partner sitting at the glass-topped desk, but her best friend.

"I sure like your head where it is Booth, but I can't speak for Bren on that, but I'm sure she'd appreciate the guy who is madly in love with her to have a head."

"Very funny Angela, now where's Bones?" He said, smirking in response to her suggestive grin.

"She's gone for the day already."

"But it's 4:02, she never leaves before 8… she's not sick is she?"

She grinned even wider at his obvious worry. "Like being sick would keep her at home. No. But I'll give you a hint. Do you know what today is?"

"You mean other than March 21st?" The artist nodded. "Umm… the first day of spring?"

"Exactly." She said with a smile. Angela's eyes began to sparkle with mirth as she continued. "And if I told you that Brennan went home early to clean her house, what would that mean to you?"

Booth was silent for a moment until it hit him.

"Spring Cleaning?"

"Yup."

Both he and Angela started to laugh.

"I guess I'll be interrupting her then. I'll see you later Angela"

"Bye stud."

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Booming classical music floated down the hall of Brennan's apartment building as the late afternoon sun sank outside her windows. She actually loved cleaning, provided she could listen, and secretly dance, to her favorite music. She had finished her bedroom in record time, bagging up a bunch of stuff to donate to charity. She decided to pile the black plastic bags in the hall until she could add the ones from the rest of the house.

Booth walked down the same hall twenty minutes later, wondering who on earth was blasting classical music. He should have known. Her front door was sitting half-open with three big garbage bags propped up against the wall._Angela wasn't kidding…_ _Ha. It's so like Bones to do her 'spring cleaning' on the very first day of spring; can anyone say literal? _He pushed the door open and had to stifle a laugh at what he saw.

There, in old clothes and waving a feather duster around like a conductor's baton, was his beautiful scientist partner. She looked so into the music, a song Booth vaguely remembered from the new Fantasia movie that he rented for Parker the year before. He knew she liked to dance around her apartment to music, he'd even done it with her before, but knowing something and standing there watching it happen were very different. It was odd to see her doing something so… normal. If you didn't know her, you'd never suspect that the woman currently performing a rhapsody in blue sweatpants was a genius and a best-selling author. Normal was something he knew she wasn't, which made this moment all the more weird to Booth, so of course he ruined it.

"I think you missed a spot."

She stopped dead still at his words, shoulders tensed up to her chin. Turning around in full on cringe she managed a guilty word of greeting as her face turned redder than she probably knew it could.

"Hi."

"Hi there yourself Mozart."

Her embarrassment was gone as quickly as it came. "It's Gershwin, Booth not Mozart. He's my favorite composer."

"I can see that."

"Very funny. Did you come here just to make fun of me?"

"No actually I came to ge…" he began to explain- until he heard the track change. Replacing the strident piano of Gershwin was a song he actually knew, a relatively new single by one of his favorite bands. He couldn't believe it.

"Radiohead Bones?"

"Yes. Their music is quite unpredictable; I find it very interesting and stimulating."

His head cocked to the side like a dog as he contemplated her with a 'God help us all' look on his face. The woman who sifted through corpses and could name every bone in his body found Radiohead stimulating. _Will the world ever make sense when I'm around her? _The small voice inside his head gave a resounding 'no'. He walked into her kitchen and got a glass of water, making himself at home.

Brennan shrugged and went back to her dusting, trying in vain he noticed with a smile, to stop dancing to the loud Brit rock streaming from the speakers.

"Just dance Bones. I've seen it before. Let us all remember 'Hot Blooded'."

She grinned at him and put some bounce back in her step. He sat on one of the stools at the counter for a minute or two, just watching her dance.

"You want some help Bones?"

"I'm perfectly capable of cleaning my own apartment Booth."

"I know; I just feel bad sitting here and not helping."

"Then dance with me, then you won't just be sitting there, but I don't need your help."

He obliged, moving towards her and bopping his head to the music. She turned around and around shaking her head along with the now useless feather duster as he played the air guitar. They danced around her living room for the rest of that song and the one after it, one by Snow Patrol, a group he was also fairly surprised to hear in her playlist. When it ended she collapsed into one of her dining room chairs, exhausted and laughing, her hair starting to fall out of the bun she'd put it up in hours ago.

The next few notes that reached her ears came from an acoustic guitar, an intro she'd become very familiar with. It was Poco's "Keep on Trying"; the song her father had sung while trying to reconnect with her, and the song she and Booth had sung together at the diner after she had saved him from Gallagher. She looked up at him and saw the recognition flash through his eyes. Without a word, he reached out his hand and she took it. He pulled her up into his arms and they danced slowly to the old tune. Somewhere between the first and second verse, Booth pulled her hair all the way out of the loose bun and twirled her around, afterwards pulling her in even closer than before. With one hand on his shoulder and the other hand in his, she felt strangely at ease. She smiled up at him and sang along with the music.

"_Oh yes, I'll keep on tryin', I'm tired of cryin', I got to find a way to get on home to you…" _

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Why wouldn't you review?


	15. Istanbul and Morocco

Ok guys, I'm even appalled at myself that this update took so long… but I hope it's worth it!

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"Booth! I swear if you do that one more time, you are going to end up on Cam's autopsy table with something very sharp protruding from your frontal bone!" Brennan seethed in her partner's general direction.

"If I wasn't so bored standing here for hours and hours I wouldn't be tapping my pen on the desk! Hell, I might stick something sharp in my forehead just to escape this room!" He retorted snappily tapping his pen all the more.

"Please do. The world will be well rid of your ego."

He crossed the platform in three steps. "My Ego!? What about yours Miss I've-got-a-doctorate-so-ya'll-better-just-hit-the-bricks?"

"I don't know what that means!"

"You wouldn't!"

"Egomaniac!"

"Squint!"

She stared. He stared. Eyes inches apart. Neither moving, breathing nor backing down. Eventually the angry face she was making began to wear on the muscles in her face, so she let it fade. Stepping back she dismissed him without a trace of the malice her voice had held just a minute earlier.

"Just go wait in my office Booth, I'll be done soon."

"Fine."

……………………..

_Sigh._ Her office was so boring without her in it. He paced the floor and picked his way along the shelves, looking at the old bones or artifacts from her many trips over the years. Reaching the end towards the top there was a shelf of large leather photo albums. Their spines were labeled with the names of the many countries she'd visited over the years. Booth reached up and pulled down the first one opening to the first page. A paper fluttered to his feet; a faded letter addressed to his partner. He picked it up skimmed it. It was from a university in Morocco, inviting her to oversee an archeological dig on some centuries old civilization. He shrugged it off and went to stick it back in the photo album, until he noticed the first picture. A younger version if his partner smiled up at him from underneath a straw hat above a caption that read '_Morocco- My first time running a dig! - Being the boss is really terrifying!'_

Booth couldn't help but smile; curious, he picked up the letter and read the date on the envelope- May 2000. She had only been 24 when she ran her first professional dig! His heart swelled with pride, she was such an amazing woman. Suddenly he felt a twinge of guilt for calling her a squint; he was a lucky guy to get to work with someone like her, even if she did argue with him and cause him nothing but grief sometimes.

He sat down with the album and leafed through. Most of the pictures were of old bones or people he didn't know, but every so often there was a picture of Temperance, smiling like a maniac, and looking so excited and passionate about everything that was going on around her.

Booth sat at her desk for nearly an hour looking at all of the albums one the shelf. The 6th one ended with her latest trip to Guatemala and as he went to place it back on the shelf he noticed another album, smaller and a quite un-academic shade of pink. He pulled down without another thought and opened it up.

This one was more like a scrapbook than an album. Smirking up from the first page was a young blonde girl wearing a 'who me?' face. Next to the picture was a dedication.

_Tempe! Hey Girl! This present is so that you never forget your awesome undergrad roommate when you go off to that fancy grad school of yours in Maryland! Northwestern was such a great time in our lives, I hope you remember it with the same fondness that I do. I'll never forget the time I ordered a turkey sandwich in Turkey... haha, and you'll never let me forget it either. Love ya! –Lizzy_

Booth chuckled as he turned the page, and then laughed out loud. In front of him was a collage of pictures labeled '_Remember the night you bought your first camera freshman year?'_ it was full of Brennan and the girl, Lizzy, making dozens of ridiculous faces and poses. The woman he knew as the rational squint who rarely cracked a smile, grinned, laughed, frowned and pouted out at him across the years. He leaned closer, looking at each picture one a time. This must have been the pre-Angela Angela, because anyone who could get an abandoned teenager just out of the foster system to grin like that had to be just as wacky as his partner's current best friend. He moved and sat on the couch with the album, eager to see what the rest of the pages held. The next page held a list of the pairs various inside jokes, as well as a large picture of them, obviously in chemistry class, decked out in goggles and white coats, laughing hysterically at something behind the camera.

The next couple pages held more of the same: glimpses of a happy silly Brennan the likes of which he'd never seen. Booth hoped that someday she'd let him witness some wacky, but then that was unlikely to expect from the woman that she had become. Somehow he'd known that underneath it all she was a normal type of weird, not just squint weird, and to see the proof was just fuel to the fire; a fire that had begun to burn the day he met her. He looked out through the glass walls of the office and let himself watch her for a moment, trying to see if any of that silly sparkle still remained. He was sure it was in there somewhere.

Staring off into space wasn't really advisable while you were snooping through the photo scrapbook of someone who could probably kick your ass. He snapped back into reality and turned the page quickly. No silly faces greeted him here, taped to the page were two plane tickets to Istanbul. The comment written above them read: _' Senior Summer interning on the dig in Turkey-- both of our first time out of the country! But it was perfect wasn't it? An adventure to go down in history!'_ Booth was intrigued; she'd never mentioned Turkey before. He turned the pages, slowly absorbing the rich colors from the pictures of mosques and architecture. Ending the album was another full-page photo, the backs of two girls, each with an arm wrapped around the other's shoulder, watching the sunset in the desert. The amber tone of the sand and the darkening tones of the sky framed the breezy silhouettes of their white linen tunics. He tenderly traced the outline of the figure he knew so well and let his mind escape him once again, not noticing her approach.

She quietly stepped into her own office, unsure of what was awaiting her. Booth had been uncharacteristically quiet for the past few hours and she knew something was up.

"Boo…" The whispered word died on her lips when she saw what was in his lap. He seemed to be… what was that phrase he used? 'Spacing out'? Not wanting to break the deafening silence, she sat down beside him and placed a hand over his tracing fingers. He broke out of his reverie and met her eyes, handing her the album. She looked down at the picture from the desert so many years ago and began to trace the figures herself.

After a while she spoke. "This was the best moment of my life. Logically not the most important, but it was just so…alive."

He replied softly. "I can see that, you two must have had a lot of fun together."

"So much fun." And as much as she despised pure emotion, a wave of it washed over her and a single tear fell to the page.

"Hey, hey. What's wrong Bones?"

"She-She died four years ago. In a car accident; it…was all very sudden."

Booth didn't say anything; there wasn't anything to be said. Instead he placed a strong hand on her back, rubbing it up and down gently, letting her know that he was there. Minutes passed as they stared at the beautiful photograph. He eventually stole a look at her and saw the mask of grief that had escaped from behind the walls that surrounded her heart. He wondered if she had ever talked about that grief before, and if she knew she could with him. Tipping her chin up with his finger to tear her blue eyes from picture he met them with his brown ones. He smiled apologetically and turned back the pages in the album.

"Can you tell me about these Bones? I'd like to hear the stories behind them." Booth offered sweetly, pointing to the first collage of silly pictures.

She considered him for a minute, looking from him down to the pictures and back and then decided that this is what Angela had meant about offering something of yourself to solidify a relationship. Booth had talked to her about the things he had done as a sniper, and here he was offering to hear something about her. She knew he would listen. She smiled softly down at the pictures.

"Well… one day I decided that I should buy a camera and when I brought it back to our room, well, this happened. Lizzy had a way with people, getting them to do things they normally wouldn't, her charisma didn't just extend to me…"

Booth watched as his partner's eyes began to sparkle with joy instead of tears, and her face began to glow as she talked.

"…One time during that summer in Turkey, she charmed a waiter at a Turkish-Italian restaurant to make her a turkey sandwich, even though they didn't serve them. She had her own version of the 'charm smile', and with her self-proclaimed 'killer blonde hair' she could get people, especially guys to do just about anything she wanted… I was always amazed at her nerve. You remind me a little of her Booth."

He laughed. "Is that who taught you what a charm smile was? She looks like quite a girl. And I think it's great that she made you smile so much. It's nice. You should do it more often."

Her attempt not to smile failed miserably and he smiled in return.

"See? Smiling is fun."

"I guess."

He turned to the page with the photo of them in Chemistry class. "So what's the story with this one Bones?"

"That one is a little bit longer and sillier… Remember when I said that I missed organic chemistry class?..."

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I know I have no right to ask after two weeks of no new chapters, but wanna review? I'll take anything, random stories, thoughts, grocery lists, even hate mail for the lack of new chapters…


	16. Magnolia

First of all, profuse amounts of apologies for the ridiculous delay in my posting of this update… that writers block is a serious condition, and without new episodes of Bones on air inspire me I just couldn't think of what to say about this word. And I know how cruel it is of me esp. cause this is the last word, so I beg for forgiveness… and hey, now you get to read a new chapter!

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"Good Morning Agent Booth." The Assistant Director greeted Seeley warmly as the younger agent opened the heavy oak door.

"Good Morning Sir, I understand you wanted to see me?"

A.D. Cullen motioned to one of the chairs in front of his desk, fondly dubbed 'the hot seat' by his subordinates; "Yes, yes, have a seat Booth. I've got news for you."

"Good news?"

"I hope you see it that way." Cullen opened the blue personnel file on his desk labeled 'Booth, Seeley SA'. He glanced over it in silence and then up at Booth.

"I see that you have been with us for nearly ten years Booth. You are an outstanding agent with a good personality and good instincts, rare for a man who comes with the military background that you have. As you know, Special Agent In Charge Richard Lidard retired earlier this month, and his position became vacant. The Deputy Director and I looked through a few candidates to take over his assignment, but you were the one who stood out for this promotion. Congratulations SAC Booth."

Booth was almost speechless; he had spent most of the last decade thinking that the man sitting on the other side of the desk thought he was an immature goof. "Wow Sir. Thank you so much. I'm honored, when does this assignment start? And what exactly is it?"

"Your assignment begins this afternoon. You will be the official-unofficial FBI liaison to the Jeffersonian Institute. Your main responsibility is to their Medico-Legal unit specializing in Forensic Anthropology. It is a prestigious partnership that dates back nearly five decades. The squints in their state-of-the-art lab over there take all of our cases that deal with remains that are too decayed to identify using normal channels. You will be investigating these homicides with the evidence they provide. Your office is down the hall; I took the liberty of putting your name up on the door. You have about an hour to move your things in, and then you are expected at your first crime scene. Your contact is their newly appointed Chief Forensic Anthropologist: Dr. Temperance Brennan." He stood and looked for Booth to follow. "The switchboard has the location for you. That's all. I expect your first report soon Agent Booth."

Booth shook his hand vigorously and backed towards the door. "Yes Sir. Thank you Sir. Goodbye."

As soon as the door clicked behind him he threw his fist into the air with an exulted "Yes!" He'd handle those squints. How hard could it be? Especially now that he was Special Agent IN CHARGE Seeley Booth.

………………………….

Booth squinted through the summer haze in the large park, swarming with cop cars and in a general state of uproar. He recognized the Jeffersonian's logo from some of Agent Lidard's files that he'd begun to read. He headed over and flashed his badge at the nearest state trooper who pointed him to the officer in charge.

"The bones were discovered buried in the baseball diamond. The wacko squints showed up and they've already got the body and the evidence on its way back to the Mother ship. The kids who discovered it don't know a thing. You can talk to 'em if you want, but there's not much to know. Don't know how they expect to ID the guy. So you're the new Jeffersonian go-between right?"

"Yea, I'm supposed to meet a 'Dr. Brennan' here."

"The Bone Lady? Yea, she's over there, underneath that tree with the white flowers."

Booth turned to look and saw a shadow underneath the tree, but it was too far away to see clearly. He turned back to the officer and shook his hand. "Thanks for your help."

He made his way across the field slowly, wondering what kind of woman this 'Dr. Brennan' would be. Probably unattractive, with big huge glasses, like the ones Molly Pickford wore in the fifth grade. She was a geek if he'd ever seen one. He stared at the grass passing by his shoes, and then up at the cloudless sky. She's probably got a ridiculous IQ and like buckteeth or something. He chuckled to himself at the image that he was conjuring up in his mind. She probably wears a lab coat and pocket protector all the time… He snapped out of his daydream after nearly tripping over a rock and realized that he was just a few yards from the tree.

"Dr. Brennan?" He called to the tall woman staring up in to the leafy branches full of sweet smelling flowers.

Booth's head nearly exploded as she turned around. Forget about squintishly unattractive and buckteeth, she was the most attractive woman he'd seen since, well, forever. _I sure hope she's annoyingly smart, because otherwise I'm in so much trouble._ He'd had no idea that squints were allowed to be this hot, or else he'd have lobbied for Agent Lidard's job. She stepped a little closer to him. _And oh_God_, she's got gorgeous eyes too_. _Definitely trouble._

He regained consciousness and held out his hand. "I'm Special Agent Seeley Booth. I've been assigned as the new Jeffersonian liaison."

She smiled politely and shook his hand. "Dr. Temperance Brennan. PhD in Forensic Anthropology. Nice to meet you." She seemed a little cold in her manner of address. _Well, at least I don't have to worry about her personality._ The doctor then turned her eyes back up into the tree.

Booth decided to try a little bonding. He sidled up next to her. "So, what'cha looking at?"

"Magnolia grandiflora." She deadpanned in reply.

"Ok… cool… any reason you're looking at the magnolia grandfather tree?"

She looked over at him with an annoyed sigh. "Magnolia grandiflora, and I don't really know why, they're nice to look at, and I was waiting for you to show up. Are you always late?"

"No, not always. I'm usually on time."

He looked up at one of the large white blossoms. "They smell nice."

"Yea, they do. The Magnolia is actually one of the oldest flowers that still grows today. Fossilized specimens have been discovered from nearly 95 million years ago."

_Annoyingly smart: check._ "Thanks for the botany lesson." He said with a sarcastic lilt to his voice.

"Anytime." She replied sincerely.

Booth would have been astonished, but he had already guessed from her correction earlier that she took things quite literally.

"So what's been established about the case so far?"

"Not much. The remains we uncovered belong to a young man, perhaps 18- 25, Caucasian, well muscled. Preliminary cause of death is blunt force trauma to the frontal bone."

"You call that not much? That's more than I've ever heard anyone get from a pile of bones."

"Bones are an excellent source of evidence, you just have to know what to look for. I've been working with skeletal remains for a while now, and haven't found any that can't tell us something about who the person who lived inside and around the bones. Sex, age, race, cause of death, diet, previous injuries, there are so many possibilities."

"Wow… that's interesting… and weird. But hey, if it helps my murder investigation, who am I to look a gift horse in the mouth?" He said with a facetious grin.

Her blank stare returned none of his joviality. "I don't know what that means."

_Was she serious? ...Apparently so._

"Well we aren't getting much done standing here and talking now are we? C'mon Bones, you can give me a beginner's tour of that state-of-the-art lab I've heard so much about."

Her face finally held an expression: annoyance. "You absolutely may not call me Bones."

_Aha! Something that annoys the gorgeous genius. Excellent._

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If I didn't want you to review, would I be shamelessly asking you to down here?


	17. Epilogue

Many thanks to all my faithful readers who hung in this long! I LOVED writing this fic, and I hope you liked reading it! My next fic is in the works… hope I can count on you guys to read review! The epilogue (this chap) links up with the end of the very first chapter.

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"So what if I know your password?! I just rattled off the list of every password, 27 of them, that you've had since like, we met. That means nothing to you?"

"Fine. I'll admit that you know me pretty well, and have a certain adeptness for knowing what I'm thinking about. But that's what you do Booth, you read body language and predict behavior by getting to know people."

"Pretty well?" He replied with a waggle of his eyebrows.

She smiled in return and her hands left their place on her hips, lowering her defensive stance to one that was friendly and open. "Fairly well."

"Do I need to make the list any longer Bones? Do you even know how I know all those things?"

She stepped closer. "I know a lot more than you think Booth. I know that you pay attention to me; you've proved that right here. And I know that sometimes you are the only one who does. So thank you for that." She began to grin as she leaned even closer. "But there's no way you'll guess the new password I'm going to put in."

He chuckled. "I'll even close my eyes."

…

"You can open them now Booth."

Before she could step away from the computer he stepped behind her, effectively forcing her to look at the screen with him looking over her shoulder. She shivered when his warm whispered breath came into contact with her ear.

"I know you, Bones. You know I do."

She watched in bewildered wonder as he leaned in and typed five letters: 'B-O-O-T-H' hitting enter softly as his other hand came to rest on her opposite shoulder. He grinned with delight as the screen lit up green with two words: 'Access Granted'.


End file.
